The UK Pensions Awards - now in their 23rd year - remain the industry's most prestigious accolades.
They shine the light on excellence and recognise the advisers, providers and investment managers that offer the highest level of innovation, performance and service to occupational pension schemes and their members and have done the most to improve this over the past year.

The Professional Pensions Rising Star Awards are about celebrating and recognising the achievements of those at the beginning of their career in the sector – shining a spotlight on their success and championing the organisations that do the most to develop young talent in the pensions industry. We are ready to celebrate their achievements at the second annual Professional Pensions Rising Star Awards.

The Workplace Savings and Benefits Awards recognise both employer and provider excellence.
The awards – which are now in their 8th year – aim to find and recognise the employers which have the best benefits teams and offerings to staff and have done the most to improve these over the past 12 months.
In addition, the awards look to reward the best pension and benefit providers – recognising those that have done the most to help employers and their staff over the past year.

So far, DC plans have largely been focused on the onset of auto-enrolment and changes to the regulatory framework - be it the ‘charge cap,' ‘pension freedoms' or consultations around ‘value for money', says Annabel Tonry, Executive Director at J.P. Morgan Asset Management (JPMAM).

In 2015 George Osborne, then the UK Chancellor of the Exchequer, decided that those age over 55 could take much more of their pension in cash. This has since opened up a range of possibilities for DC scheme members in the world of pensions.

PP Investment Awards 2018 - The winners

Here they are… The winners of the Professional Pensions Investment Awards 2018.

The winners of this year's awards - which celebrate excellence among the asset managers who serve UK occupational pension schemes ­- were announced at a lunchtime reception last Friday by leading comedian, writer and radio presenter Matt Forde

The PP Investment Awards process is unique within the industry - with the shortlist being drawn up in association with Aon, highlighting those asset managers who have demonstrated excellent performance and relative growth in assets under management over the 12 months to 30 June 2018 as well as strong performance over the past three years.

Shortlisted entrants were then asked to complete a questionnaire detailing how they differentiate themselves from their peers - detailing the product and client service innovations they made over the 12 months to 30 June 2018.

The winners in each category were decided by a distinguished panel of industry judges (see below).

The winners and finalists for the 2018 awards are as follows:

ARBS (Absolute Return Bond Strategy) Manager of the Year

Winner:

BlackRock

Highly Commended:

PGIM Fixed Income

Finalists:

BlackRock

PGIM Fixed Income

PIMCO

Emerging Market Debt Manager of the Year

Winner:

Investec Asset Management

Finalists:

Ashmore

Colchester Global Investors

Investec Asset Management

PGIM Fixed Income

Emerging Market Equity Manager of the Year

Winner:

UBS Asset Management

Finalists:

American Century

Candriam Investors

UBS Asset Management

ESG Equity Manager of the Year

Winner:

Impax Asset Management

Finalists:

Impax Asset Management

Ownership Capital

Rockefeller Capital Management

Factor Investing Manager of the Year

Winner:

AQR

Finalists:

AQR

Invesco

Wells Capital Management (Analytic Investors)

Fund of Hedge Fund Manager of the Year

Winner:

BlackRock

Finalists:

BlackRock

Blackstone

Grosvenor

Lighthouse

Global Equity Manager of the Year

Winner:

Baillie Gifford

Finalists:

Baillie Gifford

GQG

Investec Asset Management

Lindsell Train

T. Rowe Price

Global Fixed Income Manager of the Year

Winner:

PGIM Fixed Income

Finalists:

Loomis Sayles

PGIM Fixed Income

PIMCO

Western Asset Management

Impact Equity Manager of the Year

Winner:

Wellington Management

Highly Commended:

Impax Asset Management

Finalists:

Impax Asset Management

Nordea Asset Management

Wellington Management

Index Manager of the Year

Winner:

Legal & General Investment Management

Finalists:

BlackRock

Legal & General Investment Management (LGIM)

State Street Global Advisors (SSGA)

UBS Asset Management

Long Income Property Manager of the Year

Winner:

Legal & General Investment Management

Finalists:

Aviva Investors

CBRE Global Investors

Legal & General Investment Management (LGIM)

M&G Real Estate

Multi Asset / Sector Credit Manager of the Year

Winner:

BlueBay Asset Management

Finalists:

Bain Capital

Barings

BlueBay Asset Management

CQS

Multi Asset Manager of the Year

Winner:

Columbia Threadneedle Investments

Finalists:

Baillie Gifford

Barings

Columbia Threadneedle Investments

Schroders

Pan-European Property Manager of the Year

Winner:

LaSalle Investment Management

Finalists:

AXA Real Estate Investment Managers

CBRE Global Investors

LaSalle Investment Management

Quant Hedge Fund Manager of the Year

Winner:

Man AHL

Finalists:

Global Statistical Arbitrage (GSA)

Informed Portfolio Management (IPM)

Man AHL

Winton

UK and European Opportunistic Property Manager of the Year

Winner:

Tristan Capital

Finalists:

Aermont Capital

Clearbell Capital

Revcap

Tristan Capital

UK and European CRE Debt Manager of the Year

Winner:

DRC Capital

Finalists:

DRC Capital

GAM

GreenOak Real Estate

ICG-Longbow

LaSalle Investment Management

UK Core Property Manager of the Year

Winner:

Hermes Investment Management

Finalists:

AEW

CBRE Global Investors

Hermes Investment Management

Schroders

UK Equity Manager of the Year

Winner:

Lindsell Train

Finalists:

Baillie Gifford

J O Hambro Capital Management

Lindsell Train

River and Mercantile

UK Fixed Income Manager of the Year

Winner:

Insight Investment

Finalists:

Insight Investment

M&G Investments

PIMCO

Royal London Asset Management (RLAM)

UK LDI Manager of the Year

Winner:

BMO Global Asset Management

Finalists:

BlackRock

BMO Global Asset Management

Insight Investment

Legal & General Investment Management (LGIM)

Schroders

Unlisted Infrastructure Manager of the Year

Winner:

EQT Partners

Finalists:

Antin Infrastructure Partners

Basalt Infrastructure Partners

DIF

EQT Partners

Meridiam

DC Categories

Target Date Fund Manager of the Year

Winner:

NEST

Finalists:

AllianceBernstein

BlackRock

NEST

State Street Global Advisors (SSGA)

DC Investment Innovation of the Year

Winner:

State Street Global Advisors

Finalists:

BlackRock - shortlisted for its work on active fixed income

Cohen & Steers - shortlisted for its real assets fund

Fulcrum Asset Management - shortlisted for its work on diversified alternatives

This week’s top stories included Barnett Waddingham announcing nine new partner promotions, while three accounting bodies came together to publish Covid-19 guidance for the compilation of pension scheme accounts.